


Better Than Those Before Us

by flannelfeelings



Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: Amy Santiago Loves Jake Peralta, Angst with a Happy Ending, Apologies, Comfort, Early Relationship, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Falling In Love, Family, Family Feels, Fights, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Happy Ending, Holidays, Hurt/Comfort, Jake Peralta Loves Amy Santiago, Love, Meeting Family, Mild Angst, Sexism, s4, season four
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-20
Updated: 2020-07-20
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:47:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,818
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25393345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flannelfeelings/pseuds/flannelfeelings
Summary: Jake and Amy visit her family, which inspires one of their first big fights.
Relationships: Jake Peralta/Amy Santiago
Comments: 9
Kudos: 131





	Better Than Those Before Us

**Author's Note:**

> Tumblr, anon said: I adore the way you write thoughtful, sensitive jake—would love to read a fic about jake and amy having an argument, maybe him saying something mean to her in the heat of the moment, and then how he made it up to her. thank you, and I am such a fan of your work! :)
> 
> Tumblr anon said: I get so excited every time I see you’ve written a fic! Love the latest one! I have a request if you’re willing to write it. Jake meeting Amy’s brothers for the first time!
> 
> These two anons gave me an idea together so I decided to combine the requests into one fic! Hope that's okay with everyone! I loved both of these concepts and it was so fun to write something a little different. Don't feel super confident about this one but I hope you guys enjoy nonetheless! Thank you so much for sending me requests!
> 
> \- I have been having a really stressful week so I'm sorry this took so long! I have a lot of awesome requests in my inbox and I'm super excited to write them so hopefully those follow soon!   
> I hope everyone enjoys!

Normally, Easter wasn’t a holiday Jake Peralta looked forward to. He wasn’t a fan of screaming kids, or eggs, or gigantic humanoid bunnies creeping into your house in the middle of the night. He and his mom had always just eaten some chocolate and spent the day together, sometimes his grandma would come over and they’d have a nice dinner, but that was more related to the two adults both having the day off. They were Jewish anyway, so they focused more on passover.

Amy Santiago however, was a huge fan. Her large family was very religious, and were frequent Easter mass-goers. She also had seven brothers, five of whom had kids, so there were lots of nieces and nephews to please with egg-dyeing and scavenger hunts.

This was the first year Jake had gotten Easter off of work since becoming a cop, and he and Amy were currently on their way to her parent’s house. The airport had been stuffed full of people flying in for the holiday and finding a cab was miserable, so they were both a little tense from the trip

. Still, Jake was about to meet her entire family for the first time. He’d only met her father at Thanksgiving, and that hadn’t exactly gone well, but he was hopeful that they could begin to build a relationship on this trip. Besides, she had seven brothers, one of them was bound to have similar interests as him.

Amy’s parents house was rather large, but with a quaint, brick exterior and soft white columns out front. Despite its homey vibe, it was immense, several floors high and definitely enough bathrooms for a small wedding. Jake’s eyes widened a bit as they exited the cab and he took in the large expanse of home in front of him. It was a far cry from the two bedroom apartment he’d grown up in with his mom.

“Wow.” He said nervously as they began walking up the brick pathway toward the wraparound porch, “It’s huge.”

“Eight kids,” Amy shrugged.

“Right.” He chuckled.

“Promise you won’t leave me alone with my mother?” Amy requested, seeking reassurance on this very subject for the millionth time since they’d started to plan the trip. She loved her mom, but trips to visit home usually entailed her mother bragging about her older brother’s accomplishments and making Amy feel bad.

“Yes babe.” Jake nodded.

They made it to the front door and Jake sighed, mentally preparing himself to schmooze the entire trip. They were gonna be here for five days, so he needed to really commit. He wanted her family to like him. After all, he was pretty sure Amy was the _one._

After she’d waited for him in Witness Protection and taken care of him after he came home, after they'd moved in together, he couldn’t imagine facing this life with anyone else.

The door swung open and the stern face of Victor Santiago appeared, a beaming smile replacing his sour expression as soon as he saw Amy, “ _Mija_!” he opened his arms wide and Amy eagerly ran to them, becoming fully embraced by her father’s warm grasp.

Jake envied that a little. He didn’t exactly have a soft, caring father to come home to. But, he always had his mom, and he was glad Amy had both of her parents to lean on when she needed.

“I missed you so much baby.” Victor squeezed Amy tight.

“I missed you too Dad.” Amy replied, pulling away with a smile as she stepped back to take Jake’s arm, “You remember my boyfriend, Jake?”

Jake smiled nervously and stuck his hand out for the older man to shake, “Hello sir.”

Victor glanced at his outstretched hand, but didn’t take it. He nodded shortly, “Hi Jacob.”

That stung. Jake’s hand fell to his side limply, his pride and masculinity were going to take a serious hit on this trip it would seem.

“Dad.” Amy hissed angrily.

Victor recanted, and he reached an arm out to pat Jake’s bicep roughly. Jake resisted the urge to cringe at how rough the pat was, and instead focused on the positive. It was a start.

“We are happy you’re here, Jake.” Victor told him, with a bit of what seemed like genuine sincerity in his voice, “Everyone is so excited to meet you.”

“I am too.” Jake told him, still forcing an uncomfortable smile on his face, despite the fact that this entire interaction had left him feeling all sorts of unnerved. They followed Victor into the house, where the sounds of children screaming and sprinting across hardwood floors was deafening.

A cluster of little kids ran up to Amy, shrieking excitedly as they piled on to her legs for hugs, yelling, “T _ia_ Amy!”

“ _Hola mis bebes_!” Amy knelt down and planted kisses to each of their little foreheads, “This is _mi novio_ , Jake!” she gestured up to Jake, who smiled sheepishly and waved at the kids.

“He’s cute!” one of the girls giggled, and Jake felt his ears turning red.

Amy ran them through introductions and Jake shook several little hands before they were moving through the house toward the gigantic open floor plan kitchen and adjoining living room. There was loud talking and laughter pouring through the halls, it was just like family get-togethers Jake had seen on TV. “Amy!” A woman that Jake recognized from photos suddenly rushed over to pull Amy up into her arms, and he realized it was her mother, Camilla.

“Hi mami!” Amy hugged the older woman tightly, burying her face in Camilla’s neck. Jake’s heart swelled; it was so sweet to see Amy in the comfort of her mom’s embrace. He knew it was hard living so far away from them. Unlike with his mom, they couldn’t just take a drive out of town whenever they wanted to see her.

“I’ve missed you so much _mi vida,_ ” Camilla planted a smooch on Amy’s forehead, then glanced over her shoulder at Jake, who smiled a little awkwardly.

“This must be Jake!” Camilla said, grinning, “Hello Jake!” “It’s so nice to meet you.”

Jake held his hand out, hoping he’d at least get one of her parents to shake it. However, Camilla ignored his outstretched hand and pulled him in for a hug, which surprised him, but he didn’t resist.

“I know my husband wasn’t exactly receptive to you when you first met.” Camilla said quietly in his ear as she hugged him, causing him to tense a little, “But we can tell you make our Amy very happy. That’s all that matters to us, Jake.”

“It’s all that matters to me too.” he said, unsure of what else she was looking for.

Camilla pulled away, grinning at him, “Let me introduce you to my sons!”

For the next few hours, Jake was passed around between Santiagos. Amy had seven brothers, Tony, David, Miguel, Alfonso, Gabriel, Mateo and Christian. David was a bit of a show-off know-it-all like his sister, Tony was laid back and liked to exercise, Miguel enjoyed basketball so he and Jake talked about that for a while. Gabe, Mateo and Christian each had an encyclopedic knowledge of either Star Wars, Star Trek, or Dr. Who.

They were all very nice and their spouses were just the same. Miguel’s husband was a photographer and even offered to take some professional portraits of Jake and Amy for their newly christened shared apartment. All in all, it went pretty great.

Jake didn’t get to see much of Amy, but he was still having a really great time with her family. They’d been more accepting than he could’ve hoped for. Victor even came around to sharing a drink with him after dinner and discussing old cop stories, which was practically the dream.

By the time Jake and Amy had retired to her childhood bedroom, which was full of plaques and trophies to the shock of no one, he was elated and excited to face the rest of their trip. Amy however had grown a little grumpy it seemed. It was the first alone time they were getting all day, and as soon as she slammed the door shut, she let out a frustrated sigh.

Jake glanced up from the duffel bag, where he was rifling through to find a pair of basketball shorts for an early morning pickup game with Miguel and David (who was sure to be a sore loser.)

“What’s up Ames?” Jake asked.

Amy shrugged, chewing on her lower lip before she sighed again, and said, “It was a really long day. I missed you.”

“I missed you too.” Jake told her, setting down the shorts and closing the distance to wrap his arms around her shoulders, “But your family was so nice to me. It was awesome.”

Amy snorted, “Yeah, I noticed.”

Jake frowned a bit, pulling back to eye her with confusion, “What do you mean?”

“You were so busy hanging out with my brothers and having beer with my dad you didn’t even notice how miserable my mom and aunts were making me.” Amy explained, pulling away from him to go sit heavily on the bed.

Jake’s head tilted to the side curiously, trying not to let her words offend him, “Why were you miserable?”

“My mom just kept going on and on about how David is already a sergeant and how I’ll “get there someday.” her scowl deepened, “and my aunt wouldn’t shut up about my career getting in the way of us having kids-”

“ _Whoa_.” Jake laughed nervously, “We’re not having kids. We’ve only been dating a year and a half.”

“I know that Jake!” Amy hissed.

“Uh, I mean, don’t get me wrong, if I was gonna have kids it’d be with you, but I mean-”

“Stop!” Amy groaned, cutting off his word vomit, “It was just really frustrating and you left me all alone.”

“Sorry.” Jake said back, a little defensive, “I was trying to get to know your family. Like you wanted.”

“I wanted you to meet them, not abandon me for them!” she snapped harshly, “You’re supposed to have my back when my family is exhausting.”

Jake’s face screwed up with hurt, “Well I’m sorry I couldn’t be your lackey today, Amy, I was just trying to enjoy this trip. _You’re_ the one who wanted me to come meet everyone.

“You wanted to come too!” Amy insisted, getting to her feet.

“I wanted to come because _you_ want me to be a part of your family.” Jake hit back, “I never asked to have to put up with your Dad not even shaking my hand, or your mom whispering weird shit in my ear.”

“Yeah right Jake, like you weren’t loving every minute of today. My family is the closest thing to a normal family you’ll ever get!” Amy snarled.

Hurt ricocheted across Jake’s chest at her insensitive words. Even if they were true, which they weren’t, she had no right to say that. He didn’t have to put up with that. He was only here because of her.

“You know what Amy?” he crossed his arms with anger, unable to help the words as they came tumbling out, “Screw this. If I wanted to be bossed around, I would’ve brought Holt on vacation!”

“What is _that_ supposed to mean?” She demanded angrily. The dark pull of her brow and the flare of her nostril made it visible that she was just as furious as he was.

“It means I don’t have to put up with this.” he turned for the door in a huff, the frustration of the moment drowning out all of his rational thought, “If you wanted a guy to just sit at your heels and jump when you tell him, maybe you should’ve stayed with Teddy.”

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he regretted them. Jake knew he’d crossed a line when the anger on his girlfriend’s face turned to horror, and then a deep, pained hurt. He couldn’t believe he’d said that, _he’d_ put that look on her face.

“Amy-” he started, moving toward her, but she cut him off.

“Get out!” Amy pointed at the door, turning away from him so he couldn’t see the glistening tears on her cheeks, “Get the hell out!”

He didn’t have much choice. Jake pulled the door open and closed it reluctantly. Once he was out in the dimly lit hallway, his hand went for the knob to try and go back in, but he heard the lock engage from the other side. He sighed heavily. Amy had never locked him out before.

“Hey.”

Jake startled a little as he noticed David and Miguel standing in the hall, outside their respective bedroom doors. Jake braced himself for a deeply uncomfortable conversation, where they likely dragged him across the coals for hurting their little sister.

“C’mon.” Miguel gestured for the stairs.

Jake didn’t have much choice but to follow as the two men led him downstairs. They walked through the dimly lit house, and Jake was grateful no one else seemed to have woken up from the argument. Other than these two, that was.

The trio ended up on the back patio, where the color-changing lights of the pool and the orange patio bulbs was the only illumination. This may be the nicest place Jake had ever been facing an ass beating.

“Take a seat.” David said as he and Miguel both plopped down in the wicker chairs beneath the patio. Tentatively, Jake lowered himself into the parallel chair, swallowing hard.

“Sounded like a bad fight.” Miguel mused, meeting Jake’s eyes, “Amy can be a little belligerent when she’s frustrated.”

“Sorry you had to hear that.” Jake replied uncomfortably, wishing the ground would swallow him whole, “We don’t usually...I mean, that’s the worst…” he trailed off, unsure of how to complete that sentence.

“You’re two tenacious people.” David responded, “You’re gonna butt heads. We understand that.”

“We’ve definitely butted heads before.” Jake agreed, thinking back on all of their various bets and competitions and even other arguments. They certainly challenged each other, but this was something new. They'd never been so... _mean_ before.

“I shouldn’t have said what I did.” Jake said, looking at his feet, “That was fucked up.”

“Sounded like she got a couple good lashes in too.” Miguel reminded him.

“Do you and Austin ever fight like that?” Jake asked, though he doubted the answer was yes. Miguel and his husband had been seemingly inseparable all day, and very loving.

“Like _that_? No.” Miguel chuckled, “We’re much less eloquent. Mostly unintelligible shouts and crude gestures. But do we fight? Definitely.”

“Everyone in a serious relationship does.” David told him reassuringly, “It’s part of spending your life with another person.”

Jake was reminded of the many fights his parents had when he was a kid. Shouting matches across the kitchen as he tried to drown it out with cartoons or rap albums. Is that what he and Amy were doomed to? A life of trying not to wake the neighbors with their unpleasantry?

God, was he just like his dad?

“What matters is how you handle it after.” David continued, “If you’re willing to put in the work to let them know you’re still gonna be there when the dust settles.”

“I love Amy.” Jake said, “More than anything. I mean, she’s beautiful, and smart and so funny. And…she makes me feel good about myself.” Jake glanced up at the two men, both watching him earnestly, “My family wasn’t exactly as great as yours is. My parents fought all the time. I never wanted to be like them.”

“Now is the time to make that choice.” Miguel said, leaning forward to pat Jake’s knee comfortingly, “Do what your parents didn’t. Make it right.”

“She’s so pissed at me.” Jake said, “And rightfully so. I don’t know if I should just barge in there and try to fix it.”

“She’ll probably castrate you.” David chuckled, “She needs to let off steam about our family anyway.”

Jake frowned a bit, “Is it really that bad? I mean, you guys are great.”

Miguel chuckled shortly, “Our mother is a wonderful woman, but I don’t think any of us can understand the pressure on Amy. She’s the only girl in the immediate family other than Mom. Everyone treats her differently because of it. Our _tias_ , our grandparents, even Mom and Dad.”

“One time at Christmas, all the boys got fifty bucks from our grandparents, but not Amy. Our grandma got her a sewing kit.” David snorted, “She wanted to sell it but our mom wouldn’t let her. She said it was a skill she might need someday.”

Jake frowned distastefully, “Do any of _you_ know how to sew?”

Miguel laughed shortly, “Of course not.”

Jake realized that Amy must’ve had a really exhausting day. He’d never be able to understand what it was like for. After all, the only family he had was his mom, Nana, and a few distant uncles and aunts. He never had to compete for first place, or prove his worth because of his gender, he never had his job disrespected for the sake of hypothetical kids.

Amy was just frustrated, and hurt, and probably tired of fighting for respect. And he should’ve tried to comfort her, instead of allowing her anger to seep into him. Jake was her partner, he should try to learn the difference between hurt and anger. Amy was clearly hurting, and he’d only made it worse.

“I should go up there.” Jake said, “I should go apologize. Even if she doesn’t forgive me...I need to make it right.”

“Try not to wake anyone else up.” Miguel teased.

“Sorry.” Jake offered them both a sheepish grin and got to his feet, “Hey uh...thanks, by the way.”

“You’re our brother now man.” David patted Jake’s bicep as he walked past him into the house.

“See you in the morning, Jake.” Miguel smiled and followed David inside.

Jake was left standing on the patio, watching them go with a bit of awe. As awful as he was feeling from the fight with Amy, there was also an unfamiliar, fuzzy warmth in his chest. Comfort, serenity, safety...the feeling of having a big brother to look out for you. He’d never really had that before. It was an incredible feeling. Their acceptance was a soothing balm on the aching of his heart.

Though, he may have already ruined that by hurting Amy. Who knew if he’d be invited for Easter next year after what he said to her.

None of that mattered though. All he cared about was making it right.

Jake was inside the next instant, and rushing up the stairs toward Amy’s bedroom door with as little noise as possible. In his sock-clad feet, he made it up in record time, and stood outside the door, taking a deep breath.

He knocked on the door, and called out in a hushed voice, “Amy?”

No reply.

He wasn’t giving up that easy, “Amy, please, just open the door.”

Nothing.

“I spilled some orange soda on the carpet!”

The door swung open, and Amy appeared. Her hair was pulled up in a bun, and she’d changed into a tank top and pajama shorts. Her eyes were bright red and puffy, along with her lips, and Jake’s heart ached to see her look so sad. Because of _him._

“Where?” she demanded.

Jake offered her a little smile, “I lied.”

She moved to slam the door, but his palm came out and stopped it, the wood shuddering beneath his skin, “Amy please.”

Amy looked him up and down, her brows pulling down a bit in a deep frown, “What do you want?”

“I want to talk.” He insisted, “I want to apologize for being a fucking asshole.”

Amy hesitated, chewing on her cheek before she replied quietly, “I was an asshole too.”

“I was a stinkier asshole.” Jake said.

She fought against a smile that teased the corners of her lips, as she stepped aside to let him in.

“Thank you.” Jake stepped into the room and watched her shut the door behind her silently.

Then, she turned to face him and at the same time, they said, “I’m sorry.”

“Wait, why are you sorry?” they both spoke simultaneously again.

“I’ll go.” Amy shook her head, “I shouldn’t have taken out my bad day on you, I’m sorry. You were just trying to bond with my family and that _is_ what I wanted.”

“I shouldn't have taken it so personal.” Jake shook his head, “I wasn’t being understanding. I’m sure it was a hard day, and you faced it all alone.”

Amy glanced up at his face somewhat reluctantly, “I was really excited to bring you home this year, because I hoped it would quell some of their annoying habits. I was hoping we’d get to tell stories about how we fell in love and they’d gush over what a sweet couple we were. I was hoping we could tell bad ass cop stories and you’d make me seem really tough and independent. Maybe if _you_ said it they’d finally believe it. ” She laughed shortly, shaking her head, “I guess that’s really selfish. I just wanted them to focus on anything except how I’m _different_ than my brothers.”

Amy continued speaking before Jake could reply, “But that’s not fair to you, is it? You’re the love of my life, not a vehicle for distraction from my annoying family. I’m sorry I was taking my anger out on you. And it’s not your job to protect me from this stuff.”

“Yes it is.” Jake cut in, moving a little closer until he could gently reach out and take her hands, “It _is_ my job. I’m your partner, and I want to have your back. I’m sorry I was too focused on having fun than making sure you were okay.”

Amy shook her head, “You don’t have to apologize. I’m glad you had a good time, I really am.” she looked at her feet, “I’m sorry...about what I said. I didn’t mean it.”

“I’m the one who should be apologizing.” Jake shook his head, “What I said was uncalled for, and untrue, and really fucking mean. I hope you know that I feel _lucky_ to be with you, Ames.” he grimaced, “You are the most important person in my life. You have changed my life in so many ways, made it one I can be proud of. I shouldn’t have disrespected you. And I promise you it will never happen again."

“Thank you.” Amy nodded thoughtfully, “I know you didn’t mean it. We both were tense.”

Jake moved a bit closer, bringing his hands up to caress her face. Amy exhaled softly, leaning into the touch as her cheek nuzzled against his palm. Jake’s brows softened as he looked down at her beautiful, melancholy face. God she was beautiful, perfect even. He couldn’t believe he was standing here with her beneath his grasp, especially after what he’d said to her. Never again.

He wasn’t his father. They weren’t his parents. They were Jake and Amy.

Amy was strong and smart and so goddamn fucking wonderful. She was forgiving and kind and selfless. Jake didn’t know what he was, but he was going to try his best to be good enough for her.

“Do you want to leave and go get breakfast tomorrow morning?” He asked quietly, “Just the two of us?”

Amy frowned a little, opening her eyes to look at him, “Don’t you have a basketball game with my brothers?”

Jake shrugged, “I’ll tell them I’m not feeling well and we need to go to urgent care. I’ll say I have explosive diarrhea. My little gringo stomach couldn't handle all the delicious Cuban food.”

Amy chuckled, and hearing her laugh was better than falling into a warm cocoon of silk. It relaxed his shoulders and made all the bad things just fade away. When Amy was laughing, it was hard to really think about anything except for the cute little crinkle above her nose.

“No, don’t cancel.” she shook her head, “I think they’ll have fun, and it’ll be good for you guys to spend more time together.”

Jake pursed his lips, quirking an eyebrow up, “Why don’t you play with us?”

Amy smiled a bit, excitement bubbling beneath the surface, though it was tempered, “They don’t like to play with me. I’m too competitive.”

“Good, then I want you on my team.” Jake returned her smile.

She looked up at him with sincerity, “Yeah?”

“Yeah. Let’s kick some ass. Girl power.” Jake held his knuckles out to her temptingly.

Amy rolled her eyes and fist-bumped him, “I won’t need any girl power, I’ve got strong elbows.”

“I’m really glad you’re on _my_ team.” Jake shook his head and pulled her against his chest, resting his chin atop her head.

Amy wrapped her around around him and squeezed, to which he fake coughed and she laughed again. All of his anger and fear and guilt from before started to melt away as he cradled her familiar body in his arms.

“I love you, Ames.” Jake said softly. “I love you too.” she murmured against his chest, “Thanks for coming back in.”

“Thanks for letting me.”

Amy pulled back and leaned up on her toes to plant a chaste kiss on Jake’s lips. He returned it eagerly, closing his eyes against the minty taste of her mouth. The kiss was brief, but in it, held multitudes of comfort and emotion. It was a reconnection; reminding them that even when the gears of their relationship grinded, they’d always find a way to get things moving again. This was the real thing, and neither of them was gonna throw it away.

“By the way.” Jake told her after their lips parted, “I have something for you.” He rifled around in his back pocket and pulled out his wallet, removing a crisp $50 bill and handing it to her.

Amy frowned, glancing up at him in confusion, “Do you owe me money or something?”

“No actually, I’m repaying someone else’s debt.” Jake shrugged.

Amy cocked her head to the side and hesitantly reached out to take the fifty from him, “Well...I’m not usually one to turn down free money…” she still looked confused, but she accepted the bill.

Jake turned toward the bed to grab his bag and change into some pajamas. Amy crossed the room and set the bill down on the dresser, and Jake glanced over in his peripherals to see her studying it carefully. Her eyes flitted from the fifty, over to the closet, where she’d shown him earlier held all of her old “craft” supplies. Likely, her sewing kit.

Amy whirled around to face him, a little surprised, “Did you talk to my brothers?!”

Jake smirked, “Did you know none of them can sew?”

She closed the distance between them again, eyes wide and awed, “Are you giving me the fifty dollars my grandparents didn’t on Christmas?”

“That really stuck with you, huh?” he asked in a somewhat teasing voice, reaching out to brush a loose lock of hair from her face.

“You're a doofus.” she smiled at him, blinking rapidly to keep gentle tears at bay.

“I’m here for you. The rest of this trip.” He assured her, “It’s you and me. And if anyone brings up your career, or you needing to have kids, or anything that has to do with you having a vagina and your brothers not, I’ll handle it.”

“I don’t think the vagina thing will come up.” Amy laughed, “But thank you, babe.”

“I love you Amy.”

“I love you too, Jake.” She smiled warmly at him, and held up the fifty, “thanks for buying your birthday gift!”

“Hey, that money is supposed to be a token of feminism!”

Amy quirked an eyebrow up mockingly, “so you _don’t_ want an exact replica of the machine gun strap John McClane wore in Die Hard?”

Jake’s eyes widened with awe, and he hesitated, “Well...I won’t tell you what to do with your money.”

“Now _that_ is the Jake Peralta I know.” Amy perched up on her toes and kissed him again, “Now let’s get some sleep. I need to be well rested if I’m gonna break gender barriers tomorrow morning.”

“As long as that’s _all_ you break.” Jake obliged, following her toward the bed.

She laughed again, and as Jake curled up under the comforter, Amy’s warm body against his chest, he knew that he wasn’t going to make the same mistakes as his Dad. There would be no fight they couldn’t recover from. There was nothing they couldn’t fix. And that was due to one small, but important fact.

Amy was his soulmate.


End file.
